According to the planned budget of Serbia for 2026, culture will nominally receive about 86 million dinars more than it received last year.
It is believed to be the smallest increase in 20 years.
On the list of those to whom the money designated for culture in 2026, specifically 16.687.833.000 dinars, will be distributed, there are some that were not there before, while some whose state financing is usual - there are none.
What was added and what was taken away from the budget
New items are support for the development of the cultural sector in Republika Srpska 90.000.000 and support for the work of the Association of Members of Matica Srpska in Montenegro - 25.000.000 dinars.
The ones that have been deleted are Palace complex in Dedinje and archaeological Belo brdo site.
Palace complex
The palace complex on Dedinje is a cultural asset owned by the state and has been part of the state budget for the past 20 years.
The palace complex is located on top of Dedinje on an area of 134 hectares, includes the Royal Palace, the White Palace, the Palace Chapel of St. Andrew the First-Called, and is part of the Topčider cultural-historical complex, which the state declared a cultural asset of exceptional importance.
In the building built by King Aleksandar Karađorđević with his own money for his home and the home of his sons. After the Second World War, this is where Josip Broz Tito spoke with some of the most powerful politicians of that era. In 1998, Slobodan Milošević also negotiated with Richard Holbrooke in the White House about the solution to the Kosovo conflict.
The owner of the complex is the state of Serbia, which gave the use of the palaces to the heir to the throne, Alexander and his family. Funds for the maintenance of the Palace complex were provided within the budget of the Ministry of Culture. For example, 67 million dinars were allocated in 2024, and 77 million last year.
Is it all because of Prince Philip?
And then, the day before the March 15 protest, Prince Philip na Xu wrote that students are coming together to realize "one of the most basic rights - the one that generations before us fought to protect. Their call for justice and accountability is a reflection of their commitment to a better future for all."
Then in August, at the ceremony commemorating the 104th anniversary of the death of King Petar I Karađorđević in Oplenac, Prince Filip refused to lay a wreath for his great-grandfather after everyone in the delegation: Minister Milica Đurđević Stamenkovski, representatives of the Army and local governments.
He laid a wreath independently, after the memorial service and before the state ceremony, and left Oplenac. He was accompanied by his wife Princess Danica and cousins Prince Mihailo and Princess Ljubica.
In the statement, he recalled that King Petar I Karađorđević "believed that the people have the right to raise their voices, to seek truth and responsibility and to fight for a fairer society. We watch with sadness the painful and brutal scenes of violence against young people, those who are the most precious part of our society and its future."
And at the end he said what he thought about Ćaciland. In November, he published photos of the Pioneer Park and wrote: "Here was the Palace Park, a place of dignity, order and public pride, a space that connected the institutions of the state and the built environment", while now it is "a picture of neglect and political conflicts".
No explanation
The Government of Serbia did not explain the decision not to allocate a single dinar this year for the maintenance of the Palace Complex in Dedinje, so it is safe to assume that it is a punishment due to the attitude of Prince Filip and Karađorđević towards the authorities. If this is at all true, it must be said that it is many times stupid: the Palace complex on Dedinje is not the property of Karađorđević but of Serbia, the law obliges the state to maintain its cultural property, it speaks of disrespect for national history, lack of sense for tourism, and so on.
It is appropriate to add the information that the maintenance of the villas where the former President Tomislav Nikolić and the current President of the Serbian Parliament Ana Brnabić live costs more than what is allocated for the cultural heritage of the Palace Complex.
White hill
Unlike the palace complex on Dedinje, the reason why the Belo Brdo archaeological site was deleted from the budget for 2026 is impossible to even guess.
It seems like a mistake, that the person entering the budget data accidentally skipped White Hill.
Photo: PromoPlanned appearance of Belo Brdo
The Belo Brdo archaeological site in Grocka is an important Neolithic site with remains of the Vinča culture, one of the oldest and most advanced European Neolithic cultures. Belo brdo is a cultural asset of exceptional importance and represents a key segment of the national and European cultural heritage.
In order to arrange it and make it accessible to science and citizens, the Government of Serbia started the capital project "Reconstruction, revitalization and presentation of the archaeological site Belo Brdo in Vinča" in 2021. It was then announced that over the next three to four years, Serbia will invest over 10 million euros, of which 1,5 million will be provided by the City of Belgrade.
The project has three phases, and the second phase is underway, which is being implemented through the National Platform "Serbia Creates", and includes the construction of a drainage system for waste water collectors, cleaning of the coastal zone, arrangement of access roads and paths, and construction of tourist facilities.
It started at the end of 2023 and has not yet been completed - at the end of July, the media reported that the development of the coastline is underway, and the third phase of this project has not even started.
If the works of the second phase are still in progress, why is there no Beli brdo in the budget for 2026? It was not reported that the mentioned capital state project was suspended.
For Serbia and Montenegro
As it is not explained why this year Serbia will finance the development of the cultural sector in the Republika Srpska and the work of the Association of Members of Matica Srpska in Montenegro with a total of 115,000,000 dinars, but not its own cultural assets.
No one says that a mother country should not help the culture of its people in other countries, but it is unusual for it not to help the culture of its own territory.
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